1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to the collection and disposal of waste. More specifically, the present invention relates to a hands-free waste collection and disposal device that may be used to collect and dispose of various types of waste including pet waste.
2. Description of Related Art
It is estimated that over 73 million American households own at least one pet. While pets provide their owners with unconditional love and companionship, unfortunately, pets also provide their owners with the unwanted burden of collecting and disposing of pet waste.
Not only is it unsightly and carries a foul odor, the waste pets leave behind poses numerous hazards to human health and animal health. Pet waste harbors a variety of harmful pathogens and parasites (e.g., adenovirus, parvovirus, giardia, campylobacter, salmonella, roundworm, hookworm tapeworm, etc.), and when pet waste is not properly collected and disposed of, such microorganisms are easily transmitted to humans and other pets. Further, uncollected pet waste left in public areas, such as streets, sidewalks and parks, is a common public health nuisance to which many municipalities have responded by enacting local ordinances requiring pet owners to clean up after their pets.
Another problem with uncollected pet waste is that, unlike grain-based cow and horse manure, dog and cat waste is protein-based, making it unusable as fertilizer for lawns and plants. As many pet owners unhappily discover, uncollected pet waste inhibits growth and eventually kills lawns and plants.
Uncollected pet waste also plays a significant role in water pollution. The Environmental Protection Agency has deemed pet waste a “nonpoint source of pollution,” putting pet waste in the same category as oil and toxic chemicals. Nonpoint source pollution is caused by rainfall or snowmelt moving over and through the ground. As the runoff moves, it picks up and carries away pollutants, such as pet waste, finally depositing them into lakes, rivers, wetlands, coastal waters, and even into our underground sources of drinking water.
Collecting pet waste and disposing of it properly, therefore, is not merely an activity performed to improve the visual appearance and smell of household lawns and public areas; it is an important public and environmental health and safety activity. Yet, using current methods and devices, the collection and disposal of pet waste is an unpleasant and unsanitary task that discourages owners from cleaning up after their pets.
Currently, many pet owners resort to using a plastic bag to cover one hand and pick up pet excrement by hand. Many owners, however, are understandably repulsed by such a collection technique. In an effort to minimize the unpleasantness of the collection and disposal of pet waste, devices, commonly referred to as “pooper-scoopers,” have been developed for collecting pet waste. Design problems in such devices, however, present several disadvantages that are overcome by the present invention.
Current pooper-scooper devices generally consist of a long-handled device attached to a rigid tray or shovel used to scoop up and collect pet waste. The elongated handle on such devices is intended to eliminate the need for the user to bend down to collect the waste and to increase the distance between the user and the waste during collection. However, when using such devices, users oftentimes must bend down and use a nearby object, such as a stick or the like, to push the waste onto the tray. Such a collection method often soils the user's hands and forces the user to come into closer proximity with the waste than is desired.
Other known pooper-scooper devices consist of a long-handled device attached to a ring-shaped frame that is configured for attachment of a disposable bag by using an elastic band or the like to attach the bag to the frame. Once the bag is full of collected waste, the disposable bag must be removed from the device by hand. Users oftentimes soil their hands when they attempt to remove such a bag from the scooper device, providing for a rather messy and unsanitary method of use.
In an effort to solve problems associated with the above-described pooper-scooper devices, other known devices have been developed that consist of an elongated handle attached to a jaw-type scoop, which defines two opposing jaw sections that are pivotally connected at a top portion to allow the jaw sections to open and close to collect pet waste. While such devices overcome the problem of needing a stick or other external object to force the waste into the scoop, these jaw-type scooper devices are overly complex and include many parts that are prone to breakage. Additional problems experienced with such devices include the difficulty of positioning the two jaw sections beneath the waste for collection of entire piles of excrement without unintentionally leaving some behind; the inefficiencies resulting from the requirement to dispose of each pile of waste before re-opening the jaw sections to collect a separate pile of waste; the inability to collect waste that is not completely solidified; the destruction such devices cause to lawns as the clamping jaw sections oftentimes grab and tear up the grass and soil surrounding collected piles of waste; and the difficulty and unpleasantness of cleaning pet waste, grass and soil from the jaw sections.
It is therefore clear that a need exists for a device that provides clean, efficient and essentially hands-free collection and disposal of pet waste in a convenient and sanitary fashion. A waste collection and disposal device is needed that is simple in construction, that is not prone to breakage, and that provides for a collection and disposal method that does not soil the user's hands. A device and collection method are needed that do not require the user to bend down to collect the waste. Additionally, a device and method are needed that increase the distance between the user and the waste during collection and disposal of the waste. Such a device and method are needed to minimize the unpleasantness of the collection and disposal of pet waste in order to encourage more pet owners to clean up after their pets. Furthermore, a device is needed that provides a collection method that does not uproot or harm areas of grass lying beneath collected piles of waste. In addition, there is a need for a device that provides a means for collecting both solid and unsolidified piles of pet excrement. Finally, such a device is needed that further provides for hands-free collection and disposal of various types of waste including garbage, debris and the like.
In view of the foregoing, it is apparent that a need exists in the art for a hands-free waste collection and disposal device which overcomes, mitigates or solves the above problems in the art. It is a purpose of this invention to fulfill this and other needs in the art which will become more apparent to the skilled artisan once given the following disclosure.